Increasing advances in computer technology (e.g., microprocessor speed, memory capacity, data transfer bandwidth, software functionality, and the like) have generally contributed to enhanced computer application in various industries. Moreover, wireless mobile technology has become widespread and is utilized for both personal as well as business uses. Mobile devices such as telephones, pagers, personal digital assistants (PDAs), data terminals, and the like, are designed to be carried by those who travel from place to place in the daily course of business, for personal reasons, or for both business and personal reasons.
For example, mobile electronic organizer devices are being widely used to manage and classify a variety of data. A mobile electronic organizer typically enables a user to electronically retain personal data for any purpose and to retrieve the data as desired. Even though Personal Information Managers (PIMs) vary widely with respect to appearances, common to all of such devices is the ability to provide methods for managing and organizing personal information and to readily supply the information to the user. Moreover, in accordance with a common PIM, a user can search contact entries alphabetically by name, by keyword, and appointments by date, topic, and the like. Essentially, once personal data is entered into a PIM, the user can query data and retrieve information according to a plurality of specified criteria.
The appeal of mobile devices is due in large part to the convenience of having such devices available regardless of where the user may be located (e.g., at home, at work, traveling, out of town, and the like). Such computing devices can be accessed at almost any time and place and can contain a tremendous amount of information relating to people, organizations, general interests, and the like.
Moreover, electronic storage mechanisms have enabled accumulation of massive amounts of data. For instance, data that previously required volumes of books for recordation can now be stored electronically without the expense of printing paper and with a fraction of the physical space needed for storage of paper. Mobile devices can thus include multiple functions such as cellular phone service, voice over Internet protocol (“VoIP”) phone service, software applications, email access, Internet capabilities, calendar functions, music players and the like. Functions, features and capabilities have increased both the utility and complexity of mobile devices. It is likely that functions will continue to be added to mobile devices further increasing both usefulness and intricacy.
As such, mobile phones today exemplify personal computing. Their rapid proliferation and adoption signify that in many markets, nearly every person has one. Furthermore, their compact form and ease of portability facilitate their usability, wherein by supporting a variety of text and voice communications, a wide and important range of user demands are addressed. Expanding storage capacities further enable users to keep larger volumes of personal data on the phone, such as communication histories (SMS, email, phone calls), calendar data, contacts, and even traditional media like documents, photos and music. In most cases, many files and personal data are locally stored within the resident storage medium in such phones.
To protect owner privacy, various locking mechanisms enables password-locking/unlocking, wherein typically none or all of a mobile unit's features are accessible to the owner or a user thereof. Since typing a password every time a user picks up the phone is tedious, such security model often fails due to non-use.
Furthermore, such security modes hinder use of phones by non-owner users. In general, there exists a variety of social and pragmatic motivations for phone sharing that traverses across diverse user populations. For example, when the owner of a phone is engaged in other activities such as driving, other passengers are invited to respond to an incoming call. Nonetheless, during such usage, an owner's personal data can be compromised (either intentionally or accidentally), when the non-owner user accesses other applications on the mobile phone and unbeknownst to the phone owner.